UIDAI to take consent from users for sharing data

To address the issue about privacy and personal data, the Unique Identification Authority of India is working on a consent mechanism that would allow Aadhaar users to share their information with prospective service providers, according to its former chairman.

To address the issue about privacy and personal data, the Unique Identification Authority of India is working on a consent mechanism that would allow Aadhaar users to share their information with prospective service providers, according to its former chairman.

The move will “put the user in charge of his own data”, Nandan Nilekani said while speaking at the India Digital Summit, hosted by the Internet and Mobile Association of India, in New Delhi.

The development assumes significance after some citizens and activists had petitioned the Supreme Court on the privacy of their personal data given to Aadhaar, and the court last year asking the government to address the concerns. The petitioners apprehend that the data given for the unique identity number could be misused for commercial reasons.